St. Louis Loop Trolley meets FTA deadline

Supporters of the St. Louis Loop Trolley, beset by a lawsuit against the proposed line filed earlier this week, have met a Federal Transit Administration deadline to submit required documentation for the project.

Last September FTA had warned that a $22 million federal grant for the project was jeopardized due to perceived "insufficient progress" on the 2.2-mile line.

"I'm more optimistic now than I have been in a while," Joe Edwards, chairman of the Loop Trolley Transportation Development District, told local media earlier this week, prior to the lawsuit filed against the project. "I think the concern was that we didn't have enough contingencies in place."

If FTA approves the submitted documentation, bids for construction could be advertised as early as mid-month.